SteveZilla

Re: Jokes

ONLY IN AMERICA:

 

Only in America.....do drugstores make the sick walk all the

way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions

while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.

 

Only in America......do people order double cheeseburgers,

large fries, and a diet coke. !

 

Only in America......do banks leave both doors open and then

chain the pens to the counters.

 

Only in America......do we leave cars worth thousands of

dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the

garage.

 

Only in America.....do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten

and buns in packages of eight.

 

Only in America......do we use the word 'politics' to

describe the process so well: 'Poli' in Latin meaning 'many'

and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures'.

 

Only in America......do they have drive-up ATM machines with

Braille lettering.

Only in America.....do we require helmets for football players,

but not for motorcyclists.

Steve, if I have an Energy Blast with BOECV that still does it's damage vs. Physical Defense, will it's line-of-sight properties let it pass through a Force Wall that has no Mental Defense, but does have Physical Defense?

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

So "i teleport his gun to me so i can use it" shouldn't be a "level of enemy power independent" super-cheap UAA teleport.

Perhaps, perhaps not. As a GM, you can always apply limits. And there are several reasons why UOO is a Stop Sign advantage. This just illustrates one.

Heck, if i want a "super-diaarm" why not just buy 1" of teleport UAA NND yahdee yahdee with lims for "only against foci" and spend less than 5 cp?

Sure i gotta be close but, gimme a desolid to abort to and decent timing and viola... one messy situation.

First, You can't get around the UAA "Defenses" by buying NND also. Second, there is always the GM's ability to say "Not just no -- H3ll no".

taking someone's focus from them is better than just breaking it' date=' in many or most cases. So, it should cost more than destroying it, not less.[/quote']

 

Taken vs. Destroyed is balanced by the fact that the target can still recover a focus that has been taken but not destroyed. Again, this is where GM's Fiat (or whatever car he drives ) comes into play. He (or she) can head off munchkiny builds like a character with desolidification and a Teleport UAA who tries to be a "collector".

 

Or he can just deny the use of the uber-gun to the character. "I'm sorry, The MazerBlazerPhazerLazer you just 'ported doesn't seem to be working any more." And later, back at the base: "After analyzing the gun, you come to the conclusion that for reasons unknown, it's delicate circuits didn't survive the teleportation process."

 

Or, "You try to use your 'Look at what I found!' power on his uber-gun, but something about it is preventing your power from operating". (I.e., it conveniently has one of the defenses chosen for the UAA advantage.)

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

Once it's BoECV' date=' the EB acts vs mental defense, so a PD wall can't stop it. An Ego Defense FW could, though.[/quote']

 

"Any BOECV powers that are modified by defenses (such as Energy Blast or Drain) can apply either to their standard defense, or to the character's Mental Defense, at the attacker's option." - 5re, p253.

 

So, a EB+BOECV that still affects PD will pass though a PD Force Wall because it operates on Line-Of-Sight. Unless I'm missing something.

Re: Jokes

Why do programmers get confused between Christmas and Haloween? Because DEC 25 = OCT 31.

There are only 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

psychokinesis is a variant of Telekinesis' date=' which is already indirect. It didn't need BoECV for that.[/quote']

 

Oops. That's what I get for not thinking it through. How about we just replace TK with EB. I think it will still pass through the PD FW.

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

Not a Force Wall with Mental Defense. And any EB will bypass a Force Wall that has only Mental Defense. It's not an indirect attack' date=' the Force Wall lacks the defense to stop it.[/quote']

 

Even though it does (Stun) damage against PD, Psychokinesis will pass right through a PD Force Wall because of the BOECV advantage.

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

I don't think you could attack a Focus with a BOECV attack. They are probably more immune to this than an Automaton would be' date=' in fact. If you want to do something like that, give it Advantages like Range: LOS, Indirect, and Invisible Power Effects.[/quote']

 

I'm pretty sure inanimate objects can be attacked with a BOECV attack that involves physicality in some way. Just look at Psychokinesis on page 231 of 5re. A power that physically transports an object (via a UAA Teleport) would IMO work the same way.

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

*cough* hmm.. yes, well... see, I couldn't wrap my head around the teleporter guy needing to have a high dex to teleport stuff... seemed much more like he could just look at something and move it... so umm.. yeah, he's giving all his offensive uses of TP BOECV. Now granted, this increases the cost even more... here's my build:

 

Teleportation 10", Indirect (Same origin, always fired away from attacker; +1/4), Ranged (+1/2), Usable As Attack (+1), Based On EGO Combat Value (+1) (75 Active Points)

 

I kinda want position shift too, but that bumps it to 94 points (!).

I don't have a problem with it being normally based upon CV instead of ECV. It's normallya physical power, just like TK. Just say they are aiming the 'port beam at the (object of interest). Which is, after all, the way it would work (when bought with Ranged but not BOECV).

Why did you add Indirect, and only at the +¼ level?

Re: WWYD if you could recieve ONE super power

... I would suck to meat your future wife and already know when and how she is going to die/cheat or whatever else could happen.

I donno' date=' If I was *meating* my future wife or any other lass, things can't suck too badly.[/quote']

 

"Human, the other, other white meat."

 

And if *meating* is what she gets, you think she *won't* have a history? That's why it would suck.

 

Thoug, if you had Life Support, Immunity to all Terrestrial Diseases, then go right ahead!

Re: WWYD if you could recieve ONE super power

Clairsentience' date=' Retrocognition, only to see which of the @#$!!! cats is pissing on the floor in front of the litter box.[/quote']

 

For about $25 you can buy a mini color wireless CCD camera. Just plug the receiver into the AUX inputs on the VCR and pop in an 8 hr tape!

 

But this makes three of us (at last count) that picked Clairsentience with Retrocognition.

Re: WWYD if you could recieve ONE super power

I would either want 100 PRE or Perfect Knowledge of all events in the past.

 

100 PRE would be pricy (90 Points)

But

 

90 KS: All Events That Have Happened -99

Would allow me to know the answer to everthing that has hapened without messing with knowledge about things that are going to happen, so I could stil live, gamble and love. I would suck to meat your future wife and already know when and how she is going to die/cheat or whatever else could happen.

Although, once you met her, you would be fully aware of her.. *ahem*, history.

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

what is the hero power for removing a power from another character? Drain or dispel.

If it's in a Focus, the "power" can be "dispelled" by damaging it or removing it physically from the wielder. That's what the Focus Limitation allows, and why it makes the power cheaper. No need to get all complicated in how to take a Focus away from a target.

Having said that, IMO it would be completely wrong to let a Teleport UAA remove anything other than an Accessible Focus. It's a game balance issue. You can't teleport Tony Stark out of the Iron Man suit, or the Lantern Ring off of Hal Jordan's(?) hand.

And if the target has put all 350 points into that one OAF gun, that's his own fault. And remember, even though it's a Focus, and the Teleporter (or a teammate of his) gained possession of the Focus, the can only use it if it's a Universal focus, and even then, only for a short time. It's not like it's also Independent.

Re: Analyze This

Ultimately I'm still deciding on where to go on this issue. On the one hand' date=' I trust Steve Long's judgement on most of the rules, but I often think his explinations are lacking. More often than not I've seen him explain why a certain rule is the way it is and have it make no sense at all, even though the rule is infact very sound and reasonable (ECs are an example of this in my opinion). There are other times though when I can't make heads or tails of what's really going on, especially when there is no defined middle ground (you can't buy "crude discriminatory" for other Senses for example).[/quote']

 

Discriminatory (the full version) does give more information than what one would normally be able to perceive. With normal sight, looking at a nearby mass of metal, I can tell it is metal, and it's shape, but not really it's mass.

 

With Discriminatory bought on normal sight, I can now tell that it is about 65% nickel and weighs about 200 kg.

 

Normal hearing can tell between two different people, or two species of birds. Buying Discriminatory on hearing allows one to easily tell two twins apart, or two birds of the same species.

 

You can always do the "crude Discriminatory" like normal sight & hearing have by buying Discriminatory and applying "Limited Use(Crude Version; -1/2)" on the Discriminatory.

Re: "I teleport the criminal's gun out of his hand"...

I'd suggest' date=' however, requiring that the character (a) target the item as though it had an appropriate number of Shrinking levels[/quote']

 

I can see that.

 

 

...and ( the character to have enough Teleport inches to reach from them to the target.

 

I think this is unnecessary*. All UOO powers inherently have no range. The player would have to buy it with Ranged. And if he did, he should have the range he paid for.

 

That'll keep somebody from buying 1" TP' date=' UAA, and "tele-pantsing" Doctor Destroyer or flipping other foci out of hands at LoS ranges.[/quote']

 

*I think a better deterrent is the GM saying "no" to that kind of build.

 

Definitely include range penalties too.

 

Agreed, unless the character also buys it with Ranged and BOECV!

Re: Song Parodies

The old song "just a gigolo" had the chorus which I used to sing when I was playing a character with unreliable resistant defenses (and not much even when the activation roll was made) that went:

 

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII aint got no BOOOOOOOOOOOOOdyyyy...

(no body)

 

etc.

The perfect supervillain quote (from "Superman" by Five for Fighting):

"Even heroes have the right to bleed"!

Re: WWYD if you could recieve ONE super power

Actually, this one comes over from the "worthless power" thread, but Taste as a Ranged Sense would absolutely freaking rock. No more walking into a restaurant and saying, "wow, that looks good, I'd like to try some of that". Try everything you see. Add in some Stretching, Does not cross intervening space, and you can stand outside restaurants trying whatever you want.

 

Not that I love good food or anything. Seriously, this would be an absolutely awesome power to have.

Waiter! There's saliva backwash in my soup!

Though the power would cure the need for, and consequences of, a chocolate fix!

Re: Why buy aid....

Assume, for the moment, that in order to bump up a KA DC, you need to double it (per 5ER standard rules, a DC increase by dumping CVs is a 2:1 ratio on killing attacks). With that in mind, would AID have the same ruling? If it did, would that mean every 10 points of AID is a DC on whatever killing attack you have? So your 10d6 AID, Self Only, One Shot Only (-2), and so on can be an EXTREMELY cost effective way of delivering "one great shot."

 

Just some thoughts on the matter.

We shouldn't forget that Aid (and all Adjustment Powers) used on a Defense Power is half effect.

Re: Why buy aid....

"if it looks too good for what you pay' date=' thats a problem, not a success."[/quote']

 

True, and Repped!

 

Also added to my Sig.

Re: Six-Armed Ginsu Cuisinart

I thought he used weaponry, but his KA's aren't focused, and his RKA's never require reloading??

 

I agree. I'd suggest:

 

22 Sword: HKA 2D6 + Zero Endurance(+½), OAF(-1)

5 Second Sword

 

13 Pistol: RKA 2D6 - 8 Charges, 2 Clips(-¼), OAF(-1)

5 Second Pistol

 

This greatly reduces the END usage. I'd also suggest buying Half Endurance on Strength, taking it from 2 END to 1. That way, he's only using a *max* of 1 End per Phase, per Duplicate for attacks. Strength's END is only paid once per Phase, regardless of how many times or ways it's used in that phase.

 

There's likely some more description appropriate here to indicate that he's not "actually" duplicated - ie once the single body hits 0 STUN' date=' he's out.[/quote']

 

How about "Duplicates Share All Characteristics with Primary Character(-1)"?

That way, Stunned or K.O.ed is that way for all the "limbs", and a Drain affects them all. To avoid Min-Maxing, Aid/Succor wouldn't "stack" across all three characters.

 

AFAIK, the combined character, despite only having one set of legs, can still *move* for each Duplicate -- which effectively triples the movement purchased.

 

This worsens his defenses further - about 20% of the time' date=' he'll have no resistant defenses, and 7 defenses overall. A failed activation roll is reasonably likely to hospitalize or kill him.[/quote']

 

I've seen a character die from failing an armor activation roll before -- from having Dr. Destroyer knocked back into her after taking 20" of knockback. Activation Roll on Defenses is not a good idea IMO!

Re: Six-Armed Ginsu Cuisinart

If you really really want a character that can do six things at once (not just attack' date=' but other stuff like drive a car, play poker, and juggle while also wielding a sword and shooting a gun, consider getting Duplication with the special effect that the Duplicates are "merged together" -- effectively, each arm is a Duplicate or something like that.[/quote']

 

That's what I'd do -- Buy 2 Duplicates (all three characters have two arms, after all ). The "Nine-Headed Hydra" power example on p 152 of 5re uses Duplication for just this effect.

 

Just buy the attendant skills that allows each to attack with two weapons (the Duplicates will have them also, of course).

 

10 HtH Two-Weapon Fighting

10 Ranged Two-Weapon Fighting

5 Rapid Attack (HtH)

5 Rapid Attack (Ranged)

 

Then buy the attacks as Swords (buy once and use +5 to double the equipment), and do the same with a Gun. The Duplicates will have them also.

Re: No damage from falling

But then I thought that both density and drag are determined by using the volume of the object in question' date=' of course then I thought, 'no, it's surface area, not actual volume' so again my brain hurts.[/quote']

 

Actually, it's effectively the cross sectional area, not surface area of the object.

 

Drag Equation

 

Wiki had an interesting way of determining a very close approximation of terminal velocity.

 

Yes, they did.

 

Oh, another way to survive terminal velocity damage:

 

Healing 1d6, Resurrection (Regeneration, 1 Body per Turn) - Zero END(+½), Persistent(+½), Extra Time(1 Turn; -1¼), Self Only(-½)

 

21 Points. Sooner or later, you will get up and walk away.

 

Edit for poor spelling from typing too fast. :|

Re: No damage from falling

Because Gliding and Flight' date=' when used to "go upwards," just reduce your downward velocity by an amount equal to the combat move. So, your power write-up would knock off -1" from the 30" terminal velocity.[/quote']

 

That presumes that one waits until they have achieved terminal velocity before starting to use this power.

 

Edit: I hand't read all the posts, so didn't know that someone had already pointed this out.

 

Even worse' date=' falling occurs -EVERY SEGMENT-, while this power write-up works only on your Phase.[/quote']

 

If you are using flight or gliding, you are no longer accelerating in the fall.

Re: No damage from falling

None of this address the problem I have always had with Hero falling chart. I've posted it many times before, but no one seems to care. The chart states that you fall 5 inches (10 meters) in your first segment (second). Someone obviously saw 10m/s/s and said, ah-ha! you fall ten meters in your first second. No. You have a velocity of 10m/s. But you started with a velocity of 0 m/s. You accelerated evenly throughout the second and only fell the average of your velocity: 5 meters or 2.5 game inches. This error is propagated throughout the chart. The velocities are correct, but the distance fallen is incorrect and it has been in every edition.

 

Every time I have brought this up, the reaction has been, "meh. It works for me."

 

Keith "lone voice howling in the wilderness" Curtis

I hadn't seen any of those times. I'm right there with you on the gross inaccuracy of the falling chart! You are alone no more!

Re: what power do i use to stop scrying/bugs

Images - No Range(-1/2), Set Effect(Only To Conceal What Is Here; -1)

Buy it for whatever senses/sense groups you need to cover (including Mind Scan/Mental Group), for whatever area you need to cover, and pump up the PER penalties!

"Nothing Here" counts as a "solid, simple object", so there is no PER bonus given to the observer for that. And since it's being generated from within it's own area, it covers it's own visible F/X!

It's not an absolute, but it's really darn close, and prevents the "hole" problem from using Darkness.